Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Deputies are proposing that the turnover threshold specified in the Bill for qualifying relevant grocery goods undertakings should be reduced from €50 million to €10 million annually. The current threshold has been carefully chosen for several good reasons. I will allude to the main considerations in this regard.

First, I am anxious to ensure these provisions are not disproportionate. I am trying to ensure they cover a broad swathe of processors, suppliers and retailers that are not regarded as major players in the national grocery goods sector. Second, the European Commission uses a threshold figure of €50 million in respect of turnover when it is distinguishing between small and medium-sized enterprises and large firms. Third, I am anxious to ensure the regulatory and red tape obligations imposed by regulatory authorities on small and medium-sized enterprises are kept to a minimum. The reductions in the threshold levels proposed by the Deputy would lead to a much higher incidence of administrative burden among SMEs in the grocery sector. Fourth, the UK threshold for qualifying designated retailers for the purposes of that country's Groceries (Supply Chain Practices) Market Investigation Order 2009 is "any Retailer with a turnover exceeding £1 billion with respect to the retail supply of Groceries in the United Kingdom". The threshold of €50 million being provided for in this legislation is based on an extrapolation of the qualifying turnovers under the UK legislation. Fifth, the figure of €50 million emerged as a suggested figure from the public consultation process undertaken on this issue.

A proposed figure of €50 million has been set in this Bill for all of these reasons. I am seeking not to be disproportionate about the ambit of this provision to grocery goods undertakings in the Irish market. In that light, I consider that any reduction in the qualifying threshold of €50 million would impose an unfair burden on many firms in this sector. Therefore, I am not in a position to accept this amendment.